T OPICAL F IRE R EPORT S ERIES

Volume 13, Issue 5 / May 2012

Multifamily Residential Building Fires (20082010)

These topical reports are designed to explore facets of the U.S. fire problem as depicted through data collected in the U.S. Fire Administrations (USFAs) National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS). Each topical report briefly addresses the nature of the specific fire or fire-related topic, highlights important findings from the data, and may suggest other resources to consider for further information. Also included are recent examples of fire incidents that demonstrate some of the issues addressed in the report or that put the report topic in context.

Findings
An estimated 102,300 multifamily residential building fires are reported to U.S. fire departments each year and cause an estimated 400 deaths, 4,175 injuries, and 1.2 billion dollars in property loss. Multifamily residential building fires account for 28 percent of all residential building fires. Seventy percent of multifamily residential building fires are small, confined fires. Cooking is the leading cause of multifamily residential building fires (69 percent); nearly all multifamily residential building cooking fires are small, confined fires (96 percent). Thirty-one percent of nonconfined multifamily residential building fires extend beyond the room of origin. The leading causes of these larger fires are electrical malfunctions (13 percent), exposures (13 percent), intentionally-set (12 percent), carelessness or other unintentional actions (12 percent), and open flames (10 percent). In contrast, 50 percent of all other nonconfined residential building fires extend beyond the room of origin. Cooking areas and kitchens are the primary areas of origin for nonconfined multifamily residential building fires (33 percent). Multifamily residential building fire incidence is slightly higher in the cooler months, peaking in December and January.

nnually, from 2008 to 2010, res in multifamily residential buildings accounted for an estimated 102,300 reported res. These res accounted for 28 percent of all residential building res responded to by re departments across the Nation.1, 2 These res resulted in an annual average loss of 400 deaths and 4,175 injuries as well as 1.2 billion dollars in property loss. Multifamily residential buildings include structures such as apartments, townhouses, rowhouses, condominiums, and other tenement properties. Multifamily residential buildings tend to have stricter building codes than one- and two-family buildings. Many multifamily residential buildings are rental properties, and are usually required to comply with more stringent re prevention statutes and regulations involving smoke alarms and sprinkler systems. As a result of the type of building, the more stringent building and code requirements, and the fact that more people live in the building itself than in the predominant one- and two-family residence, res in multifamily residential buildings tend to have a different prole than res in other types of residences. A major difference in the multifamily residential building re prole is seen in cooking res. Twice that of other residential buildings, cooking is the cause of 69 percent of multifamily

residential building res. Multifamily residential buildings also tend to have central heating systems that are maintained by professionals and not the homeowner, thus there are fewer heating res from poor maintenance or misuse than in oneand two-family dwellings. As well, re problems related to replaces, chimneys, and replace-related equipment tend to occur less often in multifamily heating res since multifamily residential buildings generally lack these features. Finally, multifamily residential buildings usually have fewer res caused by electrical problems due to construction materials, building codes, and professional maintenance. This current topical report is an update to the Multifamily Residential Building Fires topical report (Volume 12, Issue 3) which was released in May 2011. As part of a series of topical reports that addresses res in the major residential building types, the remainder of this report addresses the characteristics of multifamily residential building res reported to the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS). The focus is on res reported from 2008 to 2010, the most recent data available at the time of the analysis. Comparisons to oneand two-family residential building res are noted based on analyses from the One- and Two-Family Residential Building Fires (Volume 13, Issue 4) topical report.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security U.S. Fire Administration National Fire Data Center Emmitsburg, Maryland 21727 www.usfa.fema.gov/statistics/

TFRS Volume 13, Issue 5/Multifamily Residential Building Fires (20082010) For the purpose of this report, the terms residential res and multifamily res are synonymous with residential building res and multifamily residential building res, respectively. Multifamily res is used throughout the body of this report; the ndings, tables, charts, headings, and footnotes reect the full category of multifamily residential building res.

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Type of Fire
Building res are divided into two classes of severity in NFIRS: conned res, which are res conned to certain types of equipment or objects, and nonconned res, which are not. Conned building res are small

re incidents that are limited in extent, staying within pots or replaces or certain other noncombustible containers.3 Conned res rarely result in serious injury or large content losses, and are expected to have no signicant accompanying property losses due to ame damage.4 The smaller, conned res account for 70 percent of the multifamily res with cooking res as the predominant type of conned re (Table 1). Nonconned res make up the remaining 30 percent of multifamily res. In contrast to one- and two-family residences, the relative proportions of conned and nonconned res are reversed; nonconned res account for the bulk of one- and two-family building res (60 percent) and conned res account for the remaining 40 percent.

Table 1. Multifamily Residential Building Fires by Type of Incident (2008-2010)

Incident Type Nonconfined fires Confined fires Cooking fire, confined to container Chimney or flue fire, confined to chimney or flue Incinerator overload or malfunction, fire confined Fuel burner/boiler malfunction, fire confined Commercial compactor fire, confined to rubbish Trash or rubbish fire, contained Total
Source: NFIRS 5.0.

Percent 30.0 70.0 59.0 0.5 0.1 4.3 1.0 5.0 100.0

Loss Measures
Table 2 presents losses, averaged over this three year period, of reported residential res and multifamily res.5 The average number of fatalities per 1,000 res and dollar loss per re for multifamily res are approximately half of the

same loss measures for all other residential building res. In addition, the average loss measures for nonconned multifamily res are substantially higher than the same loss measures for conned multifamily res; this is to be expected, since conned res rarely result in serious injury or large content losses.

Table 2. Loss Measures for Multifamily Residential Building Fires (3-year average, 2008-2010)
Measure Average Loss: Fatalities/1,000 fires Injuries/1,000 fires Dollar loss/fire Residential Building Fires (Excluding Multifamily) 6.4 27.2 $18,380 Multifamily Residential Building Fires 3.0 33.0 $9,500 Confined Multifamily Residential Building Fires 0.0 9.5 $170 Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires 10.1 87.9 $31,270

Source: NFIRS 5.0. Notes: 1) No deaths in confined multifamily fires were reported to NFIRS during 2008-2010; the resulting loss of 0.0 fatalities per 1,000 fires reflects only data reported to NFIRS. 2) Average loss for fatalities and injuries is computed per 1,000 fires; average dollar loss is computed per fire and is rounded to the nearest $10. 3) When calculating the average dollar loss per fire for 2008 to 2010, the 2008 and 2009 dollar loss values were adjusted to their equivalent 2010 dollar loss values to account for inflation.

When Multifamily Residential Building Fires Occur

As shown in Figure 1, multifamily res occur most frequently in the early evening hours, peaking during the dinner hours from 5 to 8 p.m.6 This peak period is consistent

with the major cause of res, cooking (discussed in the next section on Causes of Multifamily Residential Building Fires), and accounts for 22 percent of multifamily res. Fires then decline throughout the night, reaching the lowest point during the morning hours (4 to 7 a.m.).

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Figure 1. Multifamily Residential Building Fires by Time of Alarm (20082010)

9.0 8.0 Percent of Multifamily Residential Building Fires 7.0 6.0 5.0 4.0 3.0 2.0 1.0 0.0 11AM-12PM Mid-1AM 1AM-2AM 2AM-3AM 3AM-4AM 4AM-5AM 5AM-6AM 6AM-7AM 7AM-8AM 8AM-9AM 9AM-10AM 10AM-11AM 1PM-2PM 2PM-3PM 3PM-4PM 4PM-5PM 5PM-6PM 6PM-7PM 7PM-8PM 8PM-9PM 9PM-10PM 10PM-11PM 12PM-1PM 11PM-Mid 3.1 3.2 3.8 4.5 2.6 2.7 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.5 6.1 7.1 7.7 7.2 6.4 5.5 4.3 3.5

2.3

2.1 2.0 1.8 1.6 1.7

Time of Alarm
Source: NFIRS 5.0.

Figure 2 illustrates that multifamily re incidence is slightly higher in the cooler months, peaking in December and January. This peak is partially a result of increases in

heating and seasonal (holiday) cooking res. Multifamily re incidence is lowest during the spring and summer months of June, July, and August.

Figure 2. Multifamily Residential Building Fires by Month (20082010)

10.0 9.0 8.0 7.0 6.0 5.0 4.0 3.0 2.0 1.0 0.0 9.5 8.4 Percent of Multifamily Residential Building Fires 9.0 8.2 8.2 7.3 7.4 7.4 7.6 8.5 9.0 9.4

January

August

September

October

November

Month of Year
Source: NFIRS 5.0. Note: Total may not add up to 100 percent due to rounding.

Causes of Multifamily Residential Building Fires

Cooking is, by far, the leading cause of multifamily res.7 Sixty-nine percent of all multifamily res are cooking res as shown in Table 3. By contrast, 32 percent of res in oneand two-family residential buildings are due to cooking.

Ninety-six percent of all cooking res in multifamily residences are small, conned res with limited damage. The next six causes combined account for 21 percent of multifamily res: heating (6 percent); other unintentional or careless actions (4 percent); electrical malfunctions (3 percent); intentional (3 percent); open ames (3 percent); and equipment misoperation or failure (3 percent).8

December

February

March

June

April

May

July

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Table 3. Leading Causes of Multifamily Residential Building Fires (20082010)

Cause Cooking Heating Other unintentional, careless Electrical malfunction Intentional Open flame Equipment misoperation, failure
Source: NFIRS 5.0.

Percent (Unknowns Apportioned) 69.0 6.3 3.7 2.9 2.8 2.7 2.6

The re cause prole for multifamily buildings is different from the re cause prole for one- and two-family buildings. While the two leading causes, cooking and heating, are the same, cooking is a substantially more prevalent cause of multifamily res (69 percent) than of one- and two-family res (32 percent). Heating is a much smaller cause of multifamily res (6 percent) than for one- and two-family res (18 percent). The order and relative size of the remaining causes also differ. One explanation for the importance of cooking as a cause of multifamily res may lie in the construction materials, building codes, and professional maintenance of the buildings. For example, many multifamily residential buildings tend to have systemsheating and electrical systems for instancethat are regularly maintained by professionals. As a result, there are fewer res from lack of maintenance or misuse than in one- and two-family housing. Multifamily buildings also have fewer re problems related to replaces, chimneys, and replace-related equipment than one- and two-family residential buildings since multifamily buildings generally lack this equipment.9 It may also be that conned cooking res are reported to the re department more often in multifamily residences. While

these res are small, contained, and do not cause much damage, someone may hear the alarm in the complex (if the re is large enough to activate it) or may smell smoke and notify the building manager or the re department. If it is a newer complex, the alarms are often connected to the building alarm system and the re department is automatically called. These same small cooking res in one- and two-family residences may occur as frequently but may not be reported as often. As little damage occurs and only the residents hear the smoke alarm or smell the smoke, the resident may elect not to call the re department.

Fire Spread in Multifamily Residential Building Fires

Approximately three-quarters of multifamily res (76 percent) are conned to the object of origin (Figure 3). These res are primarily coded as conned res in NFIRS (small, low loss res that are conned to noncombustible containers)91 percent of multifamily res conned to the object of origin are coded as conned res. Only about 9 percent of multifamily res extend beyond the room of origin, far fewer than in oneand two-family residences (31 percent).

Figure 3. Extent of Fire Spread in Multifamily Residential Building Fires (20082010)

Confined to Object of Origin Confined to Room of Origin Confined to Floor of Origin Confined to Building of Origin Beyond Building of Origin 0.0
Source: NFIRS 5.0.

75.5 15.3 3.0 5.5 0.7 10.0 20.0 30.0 40.0 50.0 60.0 70.0 80.0

Percent of Multifamily Residential Building Fires

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Confined Fires
NFIRS allows abbreviated reporting for conned res and many reporting details of these res are not required, nor are they reported (not all res conned to the object of origin are counted as conned res).10 Because the majority of multifamily res are coded as conned res, the proles of when multifamily conned res occur and their causes dominate the overall multifamily re prole. As shown in Table 1, conned cooking res account for the majority of multifamily re incidents and dominate the cause of multifamily res. The occurrence of conned multifamily res is greatest during the hours from 5 to 8 p.m. when they account for 75 percent of res that occur during this period. Moreover, conned cooking res account for 87 percent of the conned res and 66 percent of all res in multifamily buildings that occur during this same time period. Conned multifamily res also peak in December and January coinciding with the increase in seasonal-related (holiday) cooking res, decline through the spring, reaching the lowest incidence during the months of June and July.

Nonconfined Fires
The next sections of this topical report address nonconned multifamily res, the larger and more serious res, where more detailed re data are available as they are required to be reported in NFIRS.

Causes of Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires

While cooking is the leading cause of multifamily res overall, it only accounts for 11 percent of all nonconned multifamily res. Generally, there are no dominating causes of nonconned multifamily res. Instead there is a group of ve causes, each accounting for 10 to 14 percent, that account for over half (55 percent) of the res. These leading causes are carelessness or other unintentional actions (14 percent); electrical malfunctions (11 percent); cooking (11 percent); unspecied equipment misoperation or failures (10 percent); and open ames such as candles or matches (10 percent) (Figure 4).11

Figure 4. Causes of Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires (20082010)

Intentional Playing with Heat Source Smoking Heating Cooking Electrical Malfunction Appliances Causes Open Flame Other Heat Other Equipment Natural Exposure Equipment Misoperation, Failure Other Unintentional, Careless Investigation with Arson Module Unknown 0.0 2.0 1.5 0.6 0.5 1.4 1.1 4.2 5.5 1.5 1.1 3.3 2.5 7.2 5.9 7.8 10.6 11.1 9.9 9.4 Percent of All Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires with Cause Determined Percent of All Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires

8.1 8.5

7.6 8.6 6.6

4.7 3.6 7.6

9.9 10.4 13.6 23.4

15.0 5.0 20.0 10.0 Percent of Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires

25.0

Source: NFIRS 5.0. Notes: 1) Causes are listed in order of the USFA Cause Hierarchy for ease of comparison of fire causes across different aspects of the fire problem. Fires are assigned to 1 of 16 cause groupings using a hierarchy of definitions, approximately as shown in the chart above. A fire is included in the highest category into which it fits. If it does not fit the top category, then the second one is considered, and if not that one, the third, and so on. For example, if the fire is judged to be intentionally set and a match was used to ignite it, it is classified as intentional and not open flame because intentional is higher in the hierarchy. 2) Totals may not add up to 100 percent due to rounding.

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Where Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires Start (Area of Fire Origin)
Thirty-three percent of nonconned multifamily res start in cooking areas and kitchens (Table 4). The next leading areas of re origin are bedrooms (15 percent) and common rooms or lounge areas (7 percent). A few res start in bathrooms, laundry areas, or on exterior balconies (each at 4 percent). Note that these areas of origin do not include areas associated with conned res as that information generally is not

reported for conned res. Cooking res are a substantial percentage of all multifamily res. Therefore, it is likely that the kitchen is the leading area of re origin for all multifamily res. Nonetheless, nonconned multifamily res that start in the kitchen are not exclusively cooking resonly 30 percent of res that start in the kitchen are cooking res. Equipment that malfunctions or fails accounts for 21 percent of kitchen res with other unintentional or careless res accounting for another 20 percent.

Table 4. Leading Areas of Fire Origin in Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires (20082010)
Areas of Fire Origin Cooking area, kitchen Bedrooms Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory Laundry area Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch
Source: NFIRS 5.0.

Percent (Unknowns Apportioned) 33.4 14.5 7.0 4.2 4.2 4.1

How Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires Start (Heat Source)

Figure 5 shows sources of heat categories in nonconned multifamily res. The heat from the powered equipment category accounts for 52 percent of nonconned multifamily res. Among specic items included in this category, radiated or conducted heat from operating equipment accounts for 20 percent of all nonconned multifamily res, heat from other powered equipment accounts for 17 percent of

the res, and electrical arcing accounts for 11 percent of all nonconned multifamily res. Heat from open ame or smoking materials accounts for 23 percent of nonconned multifamily res. This category includes cigarettes (7 percent), candles (5 percent), and lighters and matches (combined, 5 percent). The third largest category pertains to hot or smoldering objects (12 percent). This category includes miscellaneous hot or smoldering objects (7 percent) and hot embers or ashes (4 percent).

Figure 5. Sources of Heat in Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires by Major Category (20082010)
Heat from Powered Equipment Heat from Open Flame or Smoking Materials Hot or Smoldering Object Other Heat Source Heat Spread from Another Fire Chemical, Natural Heat Sources Explosives, Fireworks Multiple Heat Sources Including Multiple Ignitions Undetermined 0.0
Source: NFIRS 5.0. Note: Totals may not add up to 100 percent due to rounding.

5.6 4.2 5.0 3.7 1.2 0.9 0.8 0.6 0.5 0.4

8.8

11.9

16.9

22.8

38.6

52.2

Percent of Nonconfined Multifamily Building Fires with Heat Source Determined Percent of All Nonconfined Multifamily Building Fires 26.0

10.0 20.0 30.0 40.0 50.0 Percent of Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires

60.0

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Fire Spread in Nonconfined Multifamily Fires

Figure 6 shows the re spread in nonconned multifamily res. The majority of nonconned res, 69 percent, are limited to the object or room of re originin 46 percent of nonconned res, the re is conned to the room of origin; in another 23 percent of res, the re is conned to the object of origin. Thirty-one percent of nonconned multifamily res extend beyond the room of origin. The

leading causes of these larger res are electrical malfunctions (13 percent); exposures (13 percent); intentionally-set (12 percent); carelessness or other unintentional actions (12 percent); and open ames (10 percent). In contrast, 50 percent of all other nonconned residential building (excluding multifamily building) res extend beyond the room of origin. Automatic extinguishing systems (AESs) may have a role in containing multifamily res as discussed in a later section.

Figure 6. Extent of Fire Spread in Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires (20082010)
Confined to Object of Origin Confined to Room of Origin Confined to Floor of Origin Confined to Building of Origin Beyond Building of Origin 0.0
Source: NFIRS 5.0.

23.3 46.2 10.0 18.2 2.3 10.0 20.0 30.0 40.0 50.0

Percent of Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires

Factors Contributing to Ignition in Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires

Table 5 shows the categories of factors contributing to ignition for nonconned multifamily res. By far, the leading category contributing to the ignition of nonconned multifamily res is the misuse of material or product (46 percent). Abandoned or discarded materials (15 percent of all nonconned multifamily res) and a heat source too close to combustible materials (14 percent of all nonconned

multifamily res) are the leading specic factors contributing to ignition in this category. Operational deciency contributes to 22 percent of nonconned multifamily res. Unattended equipment is the leading factor in the operational deciency category and accounts for 14 percent of all nonconned multifamily res. Electrical failures and malfunctions is the third leading category of factors contributing to ignition at 15 percent.

Table 5. Factors Contributing to Ignition for Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires by Major Category (Where Factors Contributing to Ignition are Specified, 20082010)
Factors Contributing to Ignition Category Misuse of material or product Operational deficiency Electrical failure, malfunction Fire spread or control Other factors contributing to ignition Mechanical failure, malfunction Natural condition Design, manufacture, installation deficiency Percent of Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires (Unknowns Apportioned) 46.2 22.4 14.8 7.3 6.4 5.5 1.3 0.9

Source: NFIRS 5.0. Notes: 1) Includes only incidents where factors that contributed to the ignition of the fire were specified. 2) Multiple factors contributing to fire ignition may be noted for each incident; total will exceed 100 percent.

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Alerting/Suppression Systems in Multifamily Residential Building Fires

Smoke alarm data are available for both conned and nonconned res, although for conned res, the data are very limited in scope. As different levels of data are collected on smoke alarms in conned and nonconned res, the analyses are performed separately. Note that the data presented in Tables 6 to 8 are the raw counts from the NFIRS data set and are not scaled to national estimates of smoke alarms in multifamily res. In addition, NFIRS does not allow for the determination of the type of smoke alarmthat is, if the smoke alarm was photoelectric or ionization, or the location of the smoke alarm with respect to the area of re origin.

Smoke alarms were reported as present in 61 percent of nonconned multifamily res. In 21 percent of nonconned multifamily res, no smoke alarms were present. In another 18 percent of these res, reghters were unable to determine if a smoke alarm was present (Table 6). When operational status is considered, the percentage of smoke alarms reported as present (61 percent) consists of: smoke alarms present and operated37 percent; present, but did not operate14 percent (re too small, 7 percent; alarm did not operate, 8 percent);13 and, present, but operational status unknown10 percent. When the subset of incidents where smoke alarms were reported as present are analyzed separately, smoke alarms were reported to have operated in 60 percent of the incidents and failed to operate in 12 percent. In 11 percent of this subset, the re was too small to activate the alarm. The operational status of the alarm was undetermined in 16 percent of these incidents.

Smoke Alarms in Nonconfined Fires

Because of various avenues of re notication in multifamily buildings, the detailed smoke alarm analyses in the next section focus on all nonconned res in multifamily buildings.12

Table 6. NFIRS Smoke Alarm Data for Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires (20082010)
Presence of Smoke Alarms Smoke Alarm Operational Status Fire too small to activate smoke alarm Smoke Alarm Effectiveness Smoke alarm alerted occupants; occupants responded Smoke alarm alerted occupants; occupants failed to respond No occupants Smoke alarm failed to alert occupants Undetermined Count 4,423 17,581 1,129 2,380 517 2,123 4,919 6,449 13,713 11,760 64,994 Percent 6.8 27.1 1.7 3.7 0.8 3.3 7.6 9.9 21.1 18.1 100.0

Present

Smoke alarm operated

None present Undetermined Total incidents

Smoke alarm failed to operate Undetermined

Source: NFIRS 5.0. Notes: The data presented in this table are raw data counts from the NFIRS data set. They do not represent national estimates of smoke alarms in nonconfined multifamily fires. They are presented for informational purposes. Total may not add up to 100 percent due to rounding.

Smoke Alarms in Confined Fires

Although less information about smoke alarm status is collected for conned res, the data still give important insights. Smoke alarms operated and alerted occupants in

51 percent of conned multifamily res (Table 7). In 14 percent of conned multifamily res, the occupants were not alerted by the smoke alarm.14 In 35 percent of these conned res, the smoke alarm effectiveness was unknown.

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Table 7. NFIRS Smoke Alarm Data for Confined Multifamily Residential Building Fires (20082010)
Smoke Alarm Effectiveness Smoke alarm alerted occupants Smoke alarm did not alert occupants Unknown Total incidents Count 76,609 21,570 53,474 151,653 Percent 50.5 14.2 35.3 100.0

Source: NFIRS 5.0. Notes: The data presented in this table are raw data counts from the NFIRS data set. They do not represent national estimates of smoke alarms in confined multifamily fires. They are presented for informational purposes.

Automatic Extinguishment Systems in Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires

AES dataprimarily sprinkler systems in residential buildingsare also available for both conned and nonconned res but, for conned res, an AES was present in only

1 percent of reported incidents.15 Eleven percent of nonconned multifamily res had full or partial AESs present (Table 8). The presence of suppression systems, sprinkler systems most likely,16 was higher in nonconned multifamily res than in nonmultifamily nonconned res (2 percent only), possibly as a result of code requirements.

Table 8. NFIRS Automatic Extinguishing System Data for Nonconfined Multifamily Residential Building Fires (20082010)
AES Presence AES present Partial system present AES not present Unknown Total incidents Count 6,538 284 55,283 2,889 64,994 Percent 10.1 0.4 85.1 4.4 100.0

Source: NFIRS 5.0. Notes: The data presented in this table are raw data counts from the NFIRS data set. They do not represent national estimates of AESs in nonconfined multifamily fires. They are presented for informational purposes.

Examples
The following are some recent examples of multifamily res reported by the media: March 2012: A roaring re at a 93-year-old apartment building just south of downtown Minneapolis, MN, started in an electrical room in the basement. Although no serious injuries were reported, the early morning re in the 32-unit brick building forced dozens of people out of their homes. The re departments arson unit pinpointed the res origin to the electrical room; however, investigators could only determine the cause to be an unspecied electrical malfunction.17 March 2012: A husband and wife narrowly escaped their burning apartment in Azle, TX. The woman was injured when the ames forced her to jump from a second story window. The unit where the re started was a total loss and four other units also had smoke and water damage. The re started in the area of a couch, and investigators believe the re may have been smoking-related.18

March 2012: An early morning, two alarm re in Berkeley, CA, left a three-story, six-unit apartment building uninhabitable and displaced about 10 occupants. A preliminary investigation by the Berkeley Fire Department deemed the re accidental and determined it stemmed from a water heater closet.19 March 2012: An apartment re in West Jackson, MS, started shortly after 8 p.m. Once on scene, reghters saw ames billowing from the rooftop of the building. Witnesses stated that a child playing with matches started the re; however, no injuries were reported. The ofcial cause of the re was still under investigation.20

NFIRS Data Specifications for Multifamily Residential Building Fires

Data for this report were extracted from the NFIRS annual Public Data Release (PDR) les for 2008, 2009, and 2010. Only version 5.0 data were extracted.

TFRS Volume 13, Issue 5/Multifamily Residential Building Fires (20082010) Multifamily residential building res are dened as: Aid Types 3 (mutual aid given) and 4 (automatic aid given) are excluded to avoid double counting of incidents. Incident Types 111 to 123 (excluding Incident Type 112):
Incident Description Type 111 Building fire 113 Cooking fire, confined to container 114 Chimney or flue fire, confined to chimney or flue 115 Incinerator overload or malfunction, fire confined 116 Fuel burner/boiler malfunction, fire confined 117 Commercial compactor fire, confined to rubbish 118 Trash or rubbish fire, contained 120 Fire in mobile property used as a fixed structure, other 121 Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence 122 Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle 123 Fire in portable building, fixed location
Notes: 1) Incident Types 113 to 118 do not specify if the structure is a building. 2) Incident Type 112 was included in data analyses prior to 2008 as previous analyses showed that Incident Types 111 and 112 were used interchangeably. As of 2008, Incident Type 112 is excluded.

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Structure Type: For Incident Types 113 to 118: 1Enclosed building, 2Fixed portable or mobile structure, and Structure Type not specied (null entry). For Incident Types 111 and 120 to 123: 1Enclosed building, and 2Fixed portable or mobile structure. The analyses contained in this report reect the current methodologies used by the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA). The USFA is committed to providing the best information on the United States re problem and continually examines its data and methodology to fulll this goal. Because of this commitment, data collection strategies and methodological changes are possible and do occur. As a result, analyses and estimates of the re problem may change slightly over time. Previous analyses and estimates on specic issues (or similar issues) may have used different methodologies or data denitions and may not be directly comparable to the current ones. To request additional information or to comment on this report, visit http://apps.usfa.fema.gov/feedback/

Property Use 429:

Property Use 429 Description Multifamily dwelling. Includes apartments, condos, town houses, row-houses, tenements.

Notes:
1

National estimates are based on 20082010 native version 5.0 data from the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS), residential structure re loss estimates from the National Fire Protection Associations (NFPAs) annual surveys of re loss, and the U.S. Fire Administrations (USFAs) residential building re loss estimates. Fires are rounded to the nearest 100, deaths to the nearest 5, injuries to the nearest 25, and loss to the nearest $100 million.

In NFIRS, version 5.0, a structure is a constructed item of which a building is one type. In previous versions of NFIRS, the term residential structure commonly referred to buildings where people live. To coincide with this concept, the denition of a residential structure re for NFIRS 5.0 has, therefore, changed to include only those res where the NFIRS 5.0 Structure Type is 1 or 2 (enclosed building and xed portable or mobile structure) with a residential property use. Such res are referred to as residential buildings to distinguish these buildings from other structures on residential properties that may include fences, sheds, and other uninhabitable structures. In addition, conned re incidents that have a residential property use, but do not have a structure type specied are presumed to be buildings. Nonconned re incidents that have a residential property use without a structure type specied are considered to be invalid incidents (structure type is a required eld) and are not included.
2 3 4

In NFIRS, conned res are dened by Incident Type codes 113 to 118.

NFIRS distinguishes between content and property loss. Content loss includes loss to the contents of a structure due to damage by re, smoke, water, and overhaul. Property loss includes losses to the structure itself or to the property itself. Total loss is the sum of the content loss and the property loss. For conned res, the expectation is that the re did not spread beyond the container (or rubbish for Incident Type code 118) and hence, there was no property damage (damage to the structure itself) from the ames. There could be, however, property damage as a result of smoke, water, and overhaul.

TFRS Volume 13, Issue 5/Multifamily Residential Building Fires (20082010)

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The average re death and re injury loss rates computed from the national estimates will not agree with average re death and re injury loss rates computed from NFIRS data alone. The re death rate computed from national estimates is (1,000*(400/102,300)) = 3.9 deaths per 1,000 multifamily res and the re injury rate is (1,000*(4,175/102,300)) = 40.8 injuries per 1,000 multifamily res. For the purposes of this report, the time of the re alarm is used as an approximation for the general time the re started. However, in NFIRS, it is the time the re was reported to the re department.
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The USFA Structure Fire Cause Methodology was used to determine the cause of multifamily residential building re incidents. The cause denitions can be found at http://www.usfa.fema.gov/reservice/nrs/tools/re_cause_category_matrix.shtm.
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Total does not equal 21 percent due to rounding.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and U.S. Census Bureau, American Housing Survey Branch, American Housing Survey for the United States: 2009, Table 2-25.
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As noted previously, conned building res are small re incidents that are limited in scope, conned to noncombustible containers, rarely result in serious injury or large content losses, and are expected to have no signicant accompanying property losses due to ame damage. In NFIRS, conned res are dened by Incident Type codes 113 to 118. Total does not equal 55 percent due to rounding.

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The discussion in the Smoke Alarms in Nonconned Fires section of this report includes nonconned res that occur in both occupied and unoccupied multifamily residential buildings. There are two principal reasons for including both states of occupancy in the analysis. First, requirements that smoke alarms be interconnected in multifamily units are being included in an increasing number of local building codes. As a result, interconnected alarms may be present in more recently constructed multifamily residential buildings in many jurisdictions. Second, in all multifamily residential buildings, the proximity or closeness of the dwelling units to one another heightens the possibility that an occupant would hear an alarm, smell smoke, or see ames coming from a neighboring unit. So, even though a re may start in an unoccupied unit, it is possible that a re department will be notied either automatically or by an occupant in a neighboring unit, who may become alerted to the presence of a re either by the sounding of an interconnected alarm or by other physical cues.
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Total does not equal 14 percent due to rounding.

In conned res, the entry smoke alarm did not alert occupants can mean: no smoke alarm was present, the smoke alarm was present but did not operate, the smoke alarm was present and operated but the occupant was already aware of the re, or there were no occupants present at the time of the re.
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As conned res codes are designed to capture res contained to noncombustible containers, it is not recommended to code a re incident as a small, low- or no-loss conned re incident if the automatic extinguishing system (AES) operated and contained the re as a result. The preferred method is to code the re as a standard re incident with re spread conned to the object of origin and provide the relevant information on AES presence and operation.

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From the 2009 American Housing Survey, 11.7 to 12.9 percent of multiunit housing units have sprinklers inside the home. The percentage range reects the differences in NFIRSs denition of multifamily and that of the American Housing Survey. HUD and U.S. Census Bureau, American Housing Survey Branch, American Housing Survey for the United States: 2009, Table 2-25. Paul Walsh, Maya Rao, Unspecied malfunction blamed for Mpls apartment re, startribune.com, March 12, 2012, http:// www.startribune.com/local/minneapolis/142321545.html (accessed March 19, 2012).

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Shelly Slater, Couple barely survives apartment re in Azle, wfaa.com, March 15, 2012, http://www.wfaa.com/news/local/ Couple-barely-survives-apartment-re-in-Azle-142847545.html (accessed March 19, 2012).

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Weiru Fang, In aftermath of Dwight apartment building re, questions remain, www.dailycal.org, March 16, 2012, http:// www.dailycal.org/2012/03/16/in-aftermath-of-dwight-apartment-building-re-questions-remain/ (accessed March 19, 2012). Kourtney Paige, Apartment Fire in West Jackson, www.fox40tv.com, March 10, 2012, http://www.fox40tv.com/news/local/ story/Apartment-Fire-in-West-Jackson/x5KCRArpnEqUL19Xqotwdw.cspx?rss=2331 (accessed March 19, 2012).

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